...... However, I do agree with your statement concerning hilt retainers on Waffen SS Frogs. If you look at all of the pictures of Waffen SS Men you see a lot of bayonets with hilt straps............ It stands to reason that at some point in time that the SS was receiving WA / Army bayonets, rifles & equipment.....
Richard Kuchta
Since 1941 is possible that Waffen SS got the equipment directly from army storages same as from commerzial contracts too, but the WaA proof was accepted as enough quality for W-SS so they neednt any additional markings.
Over time the longer the war lasted, the proportional increase in tie strap equipped frogs produced accelerated ...... There was correspondence circa 1940 (?) between the head of the Waffen-SS and the OKH, wherein the OKH agreed to supply the W-SS. But as the pictures of unaltered weapons show quite clearly, that this did not happen instantly, and the W-SS continued to use captured weapons until they were re-equipped.
......I have several very crude examples that could never have got through an actual bayonet manufacturing facility. They would have been tossed into the scrap barrel to hide the hideous workmanship.
Richard Kuchta
As Andy mentioned, late WKC bayonets are well known for their very crude finishing. With one of things that seems to be forgotten in this discussion being that (
unwilling) “guest” workers were working in factories. And which would be easier? To relocate some workers? Or to move a whole factory, build infrastructure, acquire tooling etc. etc.? (Which in a postwar photo is seen with some lathes in Dachau. But they don't look like they were ever used, so the installation must have been lacking something.)
The piece nr.1 is with high possibility a blanko piece for export to Portugal ....... Some of the contract rifles were used by german army, so its possible that your piece could be one of the remain of these contract.
Portugal had multiple contracts, and the bayonets fall into the WaA253, WaA883, and WaA519 groups. All of them with no maker, and some are not numbered. When I looked into it years ago, I thought at the time that they might be P. Weyersberg manufactured. But without seeing the bayonet in question it’s just guess, as there is no basis for comparison.
Do you have any specs & or documentation for the WKC & Horster Blades?
Richard Kuchta
I don’t have period specifcations/documentation. But will dated (and undated/commercial) OEM condition bayonets suffice instead?
Regards to All, FP
